Please Sign Onto Letter to Save Turtles at UBC

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Please sign your organization onto this letter urging UBC to spare its endangered sea turtles. These turtles, obtained from the Cayman Islands, have been experimented on at UBC for ten years. A whistleblower recently revealed that the turtles will killed at the end of UBC’s study this spring. See the message below for how your organization can take action to help the turtles live out the rest of their lives in peace.

PLEASE SIGN YOUR ORGANIZATION ONTO LETTER TO UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA URGING THE UNIVERSITY TO SPARE ITS ENDANGERED GREEN SEA TURTLES

UBC set to kill seven imperiled turtles by this spring

Over the weekend, a University of British Columbia (UBC) insider tipped off Stop UBC Animal Research <http://stopubcanimalresearch.org/> about the university’s plans to kill seven endangered green sea turtles currently housed at UBC. The whistleblower claimed UBC was killing the turtles because the university was closing some animal research facilities on UBC’s south campus and had no place to move the animals. UBC obtained the turtles ten years ago from a turtle farm in the Cayman Islands. Since then, the turtles have been experimented on and will be killed at the end of UBC’s study this spring.

*Sign your ORGANIZATION onto the letter to UBC below. To add your organization to the letter please fill out the information below and email it to Brian Vincent at stopubcanimalresearch@gmail.com. DEADLINE TO SIGN ON: Monday, March 14. We will send the final letter to media. Should you have any questions please contact Brian at 604-551-3324.

YOUR NAME:________________

TITLE:_______________________

ORGANIZATION:________________________________________

CITY/STATE (OR PROVINCE):_____________________________

COUNTRY:___________________

EMAIL:_______________________

PHONE:______________________

ORGANIZATION SIGN ON LETTER THAT WILL BE SENT TO UBC:

UBC President and Vice-Chancellor Stephen J. ToopeOffice of the PresidentThe University of British Columbia
6328 Memorial Road
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z2

We the undersigned conservation, animal advocacy, and public interest organizations urge you to immediately cease invasive experimentation on the seven remaining endangered green sea turtles housed at the University of British Columbia and to allow for a team of independent veterinarians to assess the health of the turtles to determine if the animals can be placed in a sanctuary or other protective facility. If an assessment shows the animals can be moved to such a facility where they can live out their remaining days, we request UBC move forward with the rehousing of the turtles as quickly as possible.

As you may be aware, all seven species of sea turtles are at high risk of extinction. Listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, sea turtles face a host of threats. Those threats include: pollution, especially from oil spills, beach front development, ingestion of marine debris, such as plastic bags, the illegal turtle shell trade, incidental capture in fishing nets, and turtle egg and meat consumption. In addition, artificial lighting along beaches often discourages female turtles from nesting and disorients hatchlings who may mistakenly wander inland, exposing them to predation.

At a time when the international community is undertaking efforts to protect and restore sea turtle populations, it makes little sense for an educational institution of UBC’s esteem to kill members of an imperiled species. By permitting a team of independent veterinarians to evaluate the condition of the seven turtles and, if appropriate, placing the animals in a sanctuary, UBC would be showing the world it is committed to conserving one of the planet’s most vulnerable species.

Stop UBC Animal Research is a community grassroots campaign that employs peaceful, legal, and compassionate approaches to educate the public about the grim realities of research on animals at the University of British Columbia and to ultimately bring about an end to research on animals at UBC. Please visit our website at: http://ståopubcanimalresearch.org/